Apparatus for exposing the beds of water-courses and conveying material therefrom.



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APPARATUS FOR EXPOSING -THE BEDS 0F WATER COURSES AND CONVEYING MATERIAL THEREFROM.

(Application led July 31, 1901.)

ldln Model.)

WITA'ESSES.

ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOIIN W. S'lANEAR-T, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

APPARATUS FOR EXPOSlNG THE BEDS 0F WATER-COURSES AND CONVEYING MATERlAL THEREFROM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 710,813, datedrOctober 7,

Applicata@ tied Jury 31,1901. seria No. 70.425. in@ modem To all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN IV. STANEART, a citizen of the United States, residing at and whose post-officeV address is 930* Howard street, San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have in- Vented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Exposing the Beds of Vtater-Courses and Conveying Material Therefrom, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improved apparatus for exposing the beds of rivers, the object of my invention being to provide means whereby when thus exposed the whole of the gold deposited in the beds ot rivers may be recovered therefrom and also the river-beds may be worked in successive sections, the operation being extended down the course of the river-bed, as may be necessary or desirable.

Many river-beds in the Siate of California and in other gold-producing regions are rich in gold, and various means have been applied for obtaining the same. One method now practiced is to employ a dredging-machine for dredging the bottom of the rivers and carrying the contents to sluices', where the gold is extracted from the sand or silt. This method is profitable in many localities; but itis defective in that the dredging-machine is not able to reach the crcvices, recesses, holes, or pockets inthe bed of the,rivcr. In these spots are generally found the richest supplies of gold by reason of the tendency of the gold to find the lowest point on account of its great speci fic gravity. Another method of extracting the gold has been to'lay bare the bed of the river by building wing-dams, thusdiverting the water of the river from a portion of the bed. This method gives satisfaction so far as it goes; but it is imperfect in that'only a portion of the bed is'thus exposed to working, and, moreover, it is difficult to extend the operation down to the lower portion of the river when the upper portion has been thoroughly worked and gold extracted from the pockets, crevices, or'recesses, while at the same time the process can be continued on the lower portion of the river when the upper portion has been thoroughly worked.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a plan View of a river to which my apparatus is applied for extracting the gold therefrom. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the same.

Referring to the drawings, l represents a river-bed, and 2 the bank ofl the river. Between said banks is constructed a concrete dam 3, and from the middle portion of said dam extends a fiumee of such dimensions as to carry olf the whole of the water of the river under ordinarydco'nditions. Said flu me is supported upon tlestle-Workand extends longitudinally down tothe bed'of the river, discharging again into said bed at such a point that a suflcient portion of the river:

bed will be exposed to view. At any convenient point in said flume is provided a Waterwheel, which is operated by the current of water in said flume. I have herein shown two such water-wheels 6 7, one of which is located at the end of the flume and the other is located at an intermediate point thereof and is operated by a branch iin me 8, extending from the'main fiume. Said water-wheels G 7 actuate wheels E), which operate conveyers 10 and ll, the conveyer lO extending transversely to the bed of the river to a point on the banks thereof and terminating in a suitable place for dumping the tailings, while the eonveyer ll extends back along the bed of the river to the place from which the spoils are taken, so that the tailings are dumped back in the bed of the river at substantially their original location.

Vhen a river-bed is laid bare, the auriferous deposits are thrown into sluices 12 and 13, extending down along the river-bed, and are washed by means of water supplied by [lexible pipes 14C and l5, and the gold is then extracted,the tailings being then deposited upon the conveyers l0 and 11,-by which they are carried to a distant point and disposed of in the manner already described.

In order to provide for an excessive or unusual amount of water in the river, there are constructed two pipes 16 of large diameter passing through the dam closed by gates 17, said pipes extending to any suitable point of the river-bed. In case of excessive rainfall or any unusual supply of water from other causes the gates may be opened, permitting the surplus water to flow through said pipes.

An important feature of my invention re- IVO sides in the fact that I am enabled to continue the operation of extracting the gold to an indefinite length of the river-bed.

Vhen the upper parts of the bed near the dam have been thoroughly worked, the lower river-'bed may be laid bare by adding on another section of the Hume and carrying the water down toalowerpoint of the river before returning it to said river-bed. This operation may be carried on indefinitely with little expense.

l. In means for exposing river-beds and conveying material therefrom, the combination of a darn extending entirely across the river, a iiume independent of the river-bed extending from the lower side of the dam along and above the bed of the riverand discharging into said river-bed at a lower point in its course, said dam having an opening discharging into said ume, and said fiume being contracted in Width relatively to the Width of the river but being of sufficient dimensions.

to carry off the normal flow of the river, substantially as described.

2. In means for exposing river-beds and conveying material therefrom, the combination of a dam across the river, a flume extending along and above the bed of the river and discharging into said river-bed at a lower point in its course, said iume being of sufficient dimensions to take the whole normal flow of the river, an auxiliary conduit for carrying off an excess of water in the river, and means for 'closing and opening said conduit when desired, substantially as described.

3. In means for exposing river-beds and conveying material therefrom, the combination of a dam across the river, a flume ex'- tending along and above the bed of the river and discharging into said river-bed at a lower point in its course, said flume being of sufijcient dimensions to take the Whole normal How of the river, a conveyer for carrying away the tailings, and means operated by the passage of water in the fiume for actuating said conveyer, substantially as described.

4. In means for exposing river-beds and conveying material therefrom, the combination of a dam across the river, a iiume extending along and above the bed of the river and discharging into said river-bed at a lower point in its course, said flume being of sufficient dimensions to take the whole normal iiow of the river, a conveyer for carrying away the tailings extending upward in the bed of the river, and means operated by the passage of water in the ume for actuating said conveyer, substantially as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

J. W. STANEART.

Witnesses:

F. M. WRIGHT, CECELIA POWNING.

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